Kohl’s Fires CEO Ashley Buchanan Citing Conflict of Interest
Scandal has hit the struggling Kohl’s Corp.
On Thursday, the board of Kohl’s said it fired chief executive officer Ashley Buchanan for cause.
“An investigation conducted by outside counsel and overseen by the audit committee of the board determined Mr. Buchanan violated company policies by directing the company to engage in vendor transactions that involved undisclosed conflicts of interest, which the board determined to be cause,” the company disclosed Thursday morning.
Kohl’s also said that Buchanan’s termination is unrelated to the company’s performance, financial reporting or results of operations, and that it did not involve any other company personnel. Buchanan was CEO of Michael’s Cos. before joining Kohl’s in January.
Michael Bender, who has served as chairman of the board since May 2024, and a director on the board since July 2019, has been appointed interim CEO. The company is expected to hire a search firm to identify a permanent CEO.
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“The board has full confidence in Michael to serve our customers and associates as interim CEO and deliver on our commitments to our shareholders,” said John Schlifske, chair of the nominating and ESG committee, in a statement. “Michael brings over three decades of leadership experience across retail and consumer goods companies, having served as CEO of Eyemart Express, and in senior roles at Walmart, L Brands and PepsiCo.”
Kohl’s said its board plans to announce a new chair “in due course.”
The Menomonee Falls, Wisc.-based retailer provided a preliminary outlook for the first quarter of 2025, projecting comparable sales would be down 4.3 percent to 4 percent. Operating income is seen in the range of $40 million to $45 million, and diluted earnings per share is seen in the range of down 24 cents to 20 cents. Kohl’s plans to announce its first quarter results on May 29.
Bender served as president and CEO of Eyemart Express, an optical retailer, from January 2018 to April 2022, having previously acted as president from September 2017 to January 2018. Prior to
joining Eyemart Express, Bender held various executive management positions at Walmart Inc., most recently as chief operating officer of Global eCommerce. Earlier, he held senior positions at
Cardinal Health Inc., Victoria’s Secret for L Brands Inc., and PepsiCo, Inc. He currently serves as a director of Acuity Brands. Bender will remain on the board but will step down from certain board committees on which he serves as well as his role as chair while he serves as interim CEO.
